Combination lock



Dec. 24, 1963 c; wlvNDLE I 3,115,028'

` COMBINATION Lock Fned April 25. i961 2 sheets-sheet 1 De.24,19631cm/moua 3,115,028

COMBINATION -Locx United States Patent Oiiice 3d l5,28 Patented Dec.2d., 1963 3,115,928 COMBINATIN LUCK .lohn Charles Windle, 13.9. Eon 544,S Green 'Iree Bldg., 111 N. High St., West Chester, Pa. Filed Apr. 25,196i, Ser. No. 105,488 4 Claims. (Cl. 70-288) The present inventionrelates to combination locks particularly of the character which may beemployed for doors of houses and industrial establishments, and onclosets, vaults and cabinets.

A purpose of the invention is to provide a simple and inexpensivecombination lock which will respond to the combination reliably, butcannot be readily opened by an unauthorized person who solves thecombination by jockeying the lock.

A further purpose is to provide a combination lock which operates by aslider having slot means including both wide and narrow portions, thewide portions of the slot means being normally occupied by abutments ofkey pins which prevent the slider from sliding while the key pins areretracted, and the slot means being normally occupied by narrow portionsof dummy pins when the dummy pins are retracted, the wide portions ofthe key pins being removed from the slot means when thekey pins areadvanced and thus permitting sliding ofthe slider, but in case any ofthe dummy pins is advanced a wide portion of such dummy pin entering awide portion of the slot means and preventing sliding ofthe slider.

A further purpose is to latch the slider opposite the key pins bymechanism which will prevent jockeying the slider when any key pin isretracted but which will be unlatched when all key pins are advanced.

A further purpose is to permit retraction of a bolt independently of theslider from the inside.

Further purposes appear in the specilication and in the claims.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate a few only of the numerousembodiments in which the invention may appear, selecting the forms shownfrom the standpoints of convenience in illustration, satisfactoryoperation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of the lock of the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevation of the lock of FIG- URE l.

FIGURE 3 is a section of FIGURE 1 on the line 3 5.

FIGURE 4 is a section of FIGURE 2 on the ilne 4 4.

FIGURE 5 is a section of FIGURE 1 on the line 5 5.

FIGURE 6 is a section of FIGURE 2 on the line 6 6, r

showing all pins retracted.

FIGURE 7 is a View similar to FIGURE 6 showing a key pin advanced tounlatch the slider.

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary view similar to FIGURE 3 showing the sliderretracted.

FIGURE 9 is a section on the line 9 9 of FIGURE 8.

FIGURE l() is a fragmentary view similar to FIGURE 3 showing the boltretracted while the slider is advanced.

FIGURE Il is a fragmentary section on the line ill-lll of FIGURE 10.

FIGURE 12 is a fragmentary view similar to FIGURE 7 showing a variation.

Describing in illustration but not in limitation and referring to thedrawings:

The invention relates to a convenient, inexpensive and positive form ofcombination lock for doors of homes, industrial plants and the like.

It is very difficult for an intruder to analyze the cornbination, andyet very easy for an occupant of the house to open the lock. Repair andchanging of the combination are accomplished easily.

The lock of the invention comprises a housing consisting of a housingbody 21 which is of generally rectangular form with an open face and acover plate 22 across the front and united to the housing body bymachine screws 23 which extend through openings 24 at the corners of thebody but are not visible at the front of the plate.

The body has at the sides guiding shoulders 25 and at the iront and backguiding shelves 26 and 27 which receive and guide a slider 2S whichextends lengthwise of the lock and is movable between a forward positionshown for example in FIGURE 3 and a retracted position shown for examplein FIGURE 8 when permitted by the combination under the action or"handle 30 extending through slot 3l in the face plate 22.

Slidably mounted in the slider 2S near the forward end is a bolt 32which has suitable guideways at its sides 33 adjoining the slider andhas a suitably tapered portion 34 at the forward end (the taper being onthe side toward the inside oi the house) for engaging a keeper in thedoor jam when the door is locked. The bolt extends through an opening 35in the forward end of the housing.

The bolt has at its rearward end guiding pins 36 extending throughopenings 37 in the slider and capable of retracting into an open space38 near the middle of the slider. Helical compression springs 4b urgethe bolt forward and surround the pins 36, acting between the rear ofthe bolt and the slider. At the inside of the lock (t0- ward l:he insideof the house) a handle 41 attached to the bolt extends through a slot i2in the housing, the slot and the handle serving to limit the motion ofthe bolt. It will be evident that the bolt moves independently of theslider and can be retracted when the slider is orward by a person withinthe house.

Extending through the face plate in suitable banks or rows as shown arepin openings 43 which receive both dummy pins 4.1i and key pins d5arranged in a combina tion unknown to any but authorized persons. Therewill be any suitable number of dummy pins and any suitable number of keypins. Each of the pins, whether dummy or key, has a head iti on theoutside which serves to limit its motion and permits easy engagement bythe finger of the user. The head S6 is suitably the head of a separatescrew threaded into the pin and removable as by an Allen head screwdriver in changing pins.

Each of the dummy pins 4@ has :an extension 47 through a slot LESextending lengthwise of the slider, the slot 4S having a narrow portionSii between pin positions and a wide portion `51 opposite pin positionswhen the slider is advanced. Thus when the dummy pin 4d is retracted asshown in FIGURE 6 the narrow portion 4i7 of the dummy pin is at themiddle of the slot and is narrower than the narrow portion Sii of theslot. Between the head 46 and the narrow portion 47 of the dummy pinthere is a wide portion, boss or abutment 52 on each dummy pin, whichwhen the dummy pin is retracted does not extend into the wide portion 51of the slot but if by mistake a dummy pin is advanced the wide portion52 of the dummy pin 46 will extend into the wide portion 5I of the slotand lock the slider against sliding into retracted position.

Each key pin when retracted has a boss, abutment or enlargement 53 whichextends into a wide portion 51 of the slot and prevents the slider fromsliding. Each key pin also has a collar 513. which engages the inside ofthe face plate in retracted position of the key pin.

When the key pin 45 is advanced, as shown in FIGURE 7, the abutment 53moves out of the wide portion 51 of the slot, leaving a portion of thekey pin 55 in the slot which is narrower than the narrow portion Si? ofthe slot and does not impede sliding of the slider.

All of the pins, both dummy pins and key pins, yare resiliently urgedtoward retraction. In the form of FIG- URES l to ll this is accomplishedby leaf springs 56 which are mounted as by screws 57 on a rib 53 in thehousing and which suitably have socket portions 6G engaging the ends ofthe pins and tending to retract the pins.

It is important that an unauthorized person should not be able toslightly move or jockey the slider when he does not know thecombination, because if he can do this he may be able, by engagement ofsensitive fingers with an individual pin or by application of electronicor other vibration detection means to such pin, to determine whetherthat pin is subjected to load when the slider is jockeyed and istherefore a key pin, or whether it is free from load and is therefore adummy pin. To prevent this it is desirable to latch the slider againstslight jockeying motion independently of the key pins.

ln accordance with the invention, the leaf spring S6 is extended at allpositions until it is opposite a latching opening 6l lwhich is providedin the slider opposite each pin. This latching opening is -withoutfunction except at the key pins. At the key pins the leaf spring mountsa latch 62 and when the key pin is retracted this latch engages thelatching opening and tends to hold the slider against sliding. Whenhowever the key pin 4S is depressed as in FIGURE 7 the leaf spring ispushed down and the latch 62 leaves the latching opening 61, so thatwhen all key pins are depressed all latches are free and the slider 28can be moved longitudinally to withdraw the bolt.

In some cases it is preferable as shown in FIGURE 12 to provideextensions on the key pins at 63 which engage opening 6d in the leafsprings and to provide a saddle 65 on the rib 58 which tends to curve orybias the leaf spring into engagement of the latching opening 6l bylatches 62' at the key pins.

The latching openings are not used and latches are not provided Aat thedummy pins but they are available at all positions so that in order tochange the combina-tion by changing around the key pins and dummy pinsit is merely necessary to disassemble the lock, remove the heads 46which are suitably screw threaded in the ends of the pins, change aroundthe pins and insert and remove latches so that there will be latches atall the key pins. The latches 62 can conveniently have screws that areremovable to change latches.

In operation, it will be evident that the lock will be either mounted onthe outside of the door by suitable bolts from the inside which do notshow at the outside or will be inset into the door and fastened to itfrom the inside. In any case the face plate of the lock is fully visibleat the outside of the door.

The authorized person desiring to enter the house and knowing thecombination presses only on the key pins and pulls on the handle toretract the bolt and open the door. He then can throw the slide :forwardso that the door locks, and he can close the door from the inside.

An unauthorized person not knowing the combination even if he shouldhappen to press one or more of the key pins will likely also press adummy pin and prevent moving of the slider.

A person inside the house can move the bolt by the handle 41 entirelyindependent of the slider, and when he goes out can slam the doorwithout manipulating the slider and the bolt will retract due to thewedge action of the sloping surface 34 of the bolt on the keeper andwill spring-lock the door.

In view of my invention and disclosure, variations and modifications tomeet individual whim or particular need will doubtless become evident toothers skilled in the art, to obtain all or part of the benefits of myinvention without copying the structure shown, and I, therefore, claimall such insofar as they fall within the reasonable spirit and scope ofmy claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a combination lock, a housing, a slider slidably mounted in thehousing and having slot means extending through the slider in thedirection of sliding, said slider slot means having enlargements thereinat inten/als along its length, a bolt connected with the slider andextending to a position outside the housing in the forward position ofthe slider, dummy pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider at positions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said dummy pins havin'T in retracted position adiameter of the portion within the slot means which is less than thenarrow width of the slot means and having pin enlargements which whenthe dummy pins are advanced enter the slot means and have a width largerthan the narrow width of the slot means and which enter the slotenlargements, key pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider at positions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said key pins having in retracted positionsenlargements which occupy the slot enlargements, `which key pinenlargements lare wider than the narrow width of the slot means andhaving in advanced positions portions within the slot means which arenarrower than the narrow width of the slot means, means for retractngthe dummy pins and the key pins, means for sliding the slider and thebolt when the dummy pins are all retracted and the key pins are alladvanced, latch openings in the slider opposite the key pins and latcheswhich are adapted to engage the latch openings in the slider when thekey pins are retracted and which are withdrawn from the slider when thekey pins are advanced.

2. In a combination lock, a housing, a slider slidably mounted in thehousing and having slot means extending through the `slider in thedirection of sliding, said slider slot means having enlargements thereinat intervals along its length, a bolt connected with the slider andextending to -a position outside the housing in the forward position ofthe slider, dummy pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider at positions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said dummy pins having in retracted position adiameter of the portion within the slot means which is less than thenarrow Width of the slot means and having pin enlargements which whenthe dummy pins are advanced enter the slot means and have a width largerthan the narrow width of the slot means and which enter the slotenlargements, key pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider `at positions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said key pins having in retracted positionsenlargements which occupy the slot enlargements, which key pinenlargements are wider than the narrow Width of the slot means andhaving in advanced positions portions within the slot means which arenarrower than the narrow width of the slot means, means for retractingthe dummy pins and the key pins, and means for sliding the slider andthe bolt when the dummy pins are all retracted and the key pins are alladvanced, in which the means for retracting the dummy pins and the keypins comprises leaf springs acting on the ends of said pins, latchingopenings in the slider opposite the key pins and latches mounted on theleaf springs opposite the key pins and adapted to engage lin the latchopenings when the key pins are retracted and released when the key pinsare advanced.

3. A device of claim 2, in which the leaf springs have openings oppositethe ends of the key pins and the key pins have extensions into theopenings in the leaf springs.

4. In a combination lock, a housing, a slider slidably mounted in thehousing and having slot means extending through the slider in thedirection of sliding, said slider slot means having enlargements thereinat intervals along its length, a bolt connected with the slider andextending to a position outside the housing in the forward position ofthe slider, dummy pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider at positions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said dummy pins having in retracted position adiameter of the portion within the slot means which is less than thenarrow width of the slot means and having pin enlargements which whenthe dummy pins yare adv-anced enter the slot means and have 1a widthlarger than the narrow width of the slot means and which enter the slotenlargements, key pins extending through the housing and through theslot means transversely of the slider at posi- ,tions at which the slotmeans has enlargements, said key pins having in retracted positionsenlargements which occupy the slot enlargements, which key pinenlargements are wider than the narrow width of the slot means andhaving in advanced positions portions within the slot means which arenarrower than the narrow width of the slot means, means for retractingthe dummy pins and the key pins, means yfor sliding the slider and thebolt when the dummy pins are Iall retracted and the key pins are 6 alladvanced, latch openings in the slider opposite the key pins landlatches which are adapted to engage the latch openings in the sliderwhen the key pins are retracted and which are Withdrawn from the sliderwhen the key pins are advanced, wherein Ithe dummy pins are eachintegnal.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,358,877 Ricks Nov. 16, 1920 1,656,699 Elinwall Jan. 17, 1928 2,772,555Smith Dec. 4, 1956 2,967,419 Katona Jan. 10, 1961 2,997,872 -Fry Aug.29, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 493,535 Italy Apr. 27, 1954

1. IN A COMBINATION LOCK, A HOUSING, A SLIDER SLIDABLY MOUNTED IN THEHOUSING AND HAVING SLOT MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH THE SLIDER IN THEDIRECTION OF SLIDING, SAID SLIDER SLOT MEANS HAVING ENLARGEMENTS THEREINAT INTERVALS ALONG ITS LENGTH, A BOLT CONNECTED WITH THE SLIDER ANDEXTENDING TO A POSITION OUTSIDE THE HOUSING IN THE FORWARD POSITION OFTHE SLIDER, DUMMY PINS EXTENDING THROUGH THE HOUSING AND THROUGH THESLOT MEANS TRANSVERSELY OF THE SLIDER AT POSITIONS AT WHICH THE SLOTMEANS HAS ENLARGEMENTS, SAID DUMMY PINS HAVING IN RETRACTED POSITION ADIAMETER OF THE PORTION WITHIN THE SLOT MEANS WHICH IS LESS THAN THENARROW WIDTH OF THE SLOT MEANS AND HAVING PIN ENLARGEMENTS WHICH WHENTHE DUMMY PINS ARE ADVANCED ENTER THE SLOT MEANS AND HAVE A WIDTH LARGERTHAN THE NARROW WIDTH OF THE SLOT MEANS AND WHICH ENTER THE SLOTENLARGEMENTS, KEY PINS EXTENDING THROUGH THE HOUSING AND THROUGH THESLOT MEANS TRANSVERSELY OF THE SLIDER AT POSITIONS AT WHICH THE SLOTMEANS HAS ENLARGEMENTS, SAID KEY PINS HAVING IN RETRACTED POSITIONSENLARGEMENTS WHICH OCCUPY THE SLOT ENLARGEMENTS, WHICH KEY PINENLARGEMENTS ARE WIDER THAN THE NARROW WIDTH OF THE SLOT MEANS ANDHAVING IN ADVANCE POSITIONS PORTIONS WITHIN THE SLOT MEANS WHICH ARENARROWER THAN THE NARROW WIDTH OF THE SLOT MEANS, MEANS FOR RETRACTINGTHE DUMMY PINS AND THE KEY PINS, MEANS FOR SLIDING THE SLIDER AND THEBOLT WHEN THE DUMMY PINS ARE ALL RETRACTED AND THE KEY PINS ARE ALLADVANCED, LATCH OPENINGS IN THE SLIDER OPPOSITE THE KEY PINS AND LATCHESWHICH ARE ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE LATCH OPENINGS IN THE SLIDER WHEN THEKEY PINS ARE RETRACTED AND WHICH ARE WITHDRAWN FROM THE SLIDER WHEN THEKEY PINS ARE ADVANCED.